EXCLUSIVE: Punk Standouts Screeching Weasel

Grab "Beginningless Vacation," off the Chicago band's first new album in over a decade.

While Chicago punk vets Screeching Weasel helped influence bands like Green Day, they also endured their share of ups and downs over the past 25 years, including multiple breakups and countless lineup shifts. But frontman Ben Weasel is back with First World Manifesto (out March 15 on Fat Wreck), a brand new album of Screeching Weasel’s snotty punk rock’n’roll, the band’s first release in over a decade. Download the new cut, “Beginningless Vacation,” right here.

Launching with a timeless “1-2-3-4″ count-off, “Beginningless Vacation” laments the world of the working stiff in Screeching Weasel’s trademark style, whose sound mirrors the band’s geographic roots. From the East Coast, Weasel employs the lightning-quick pop sound of the Ramones, and from the West Coast, it’s a Mike Ness-esque snarl.

“This is everything you could ask for from the band the humorless twats love to hate and the cultured, refined connoisseurs of quality rock’n’roll love to love,” Weasel says.

Tell us what you think of the punk act’s return to form in the comments. And if you’re hitting SXSW in March, Screeching Weasel will be there, headlining the Fat Wreck Chords showcase.